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 After years of glacial
progress, the past two months have seen the
"Circus" singer's father, Jamie Spears, make a
surprise request for her conservatorship to end,
and Spears, 39, getting engaged to her long-term
boyfriend.
A documentary alleged that the singer's phone
and bedroom were bugged, and Spears' attorney is
demanding that Jamie Spears be suspended as the
guardian of the singer's $60 million estate.
It was unclear how much will be discussed at
Wednesday's hearing in Los Angeles Superior
Court or whether Judge Brenda Penny will make
any immediate decisions.
Mathew Rosengart, the singer's attorney, has
insisted in court filings that Jamie Spears be
removed immediately as conservator and that a
transition period is agreed so that the
increasingly contentious conservatorship can be
terminated before the year ends.
Jamie Spears has controlled his daughter's
business affairs since 2008 when he placed her
under a conservatorship following a mental
breakdown. The court-approved conservatorship
dictates her personal, medical and financial
affairs, but the nature of her mental condition
has never been revealed.
In court documents ahead of Wednesday's hearing,
Rosengart said Jamie Spears had "crossed
unfathomable lines" by reportedly monitoring his
daughter's calls, emails and texts, including
messages to her previous lawyer, and having a
listening device placed in her bedroom.
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 The claims were made in a New
York Times documentary, "Controlling Britney
Spears," released last week. Britney Spears
appeared perplexed by the film.
"I must say I scratched my head a couple of
times!!! I really try to disassociate myself
from the drama!!!," she commented in an
Instagram post on Monday. "Number one, that's
the past!!!. Number two, can the dialogue get
any classier???" Jamie Spears
has said his actions were within his authority
as a conservator. He has rejected calls to step
aside, saying an experienced hand is needed
during a transition period from the
conservatorship to a regular business manager.
Spears stepped up her efforts in June to break
free of the conservatorship, telling the judge
in her first public comments that she found it
abusive and humiliating.
Public support for her has swelled and some
restrictions Spears complained about have been
loosened. She can now drive her own car and said
she got her first iPad.
Two weeks ago she announced her engagement to
Sam Asghari, 27, her personal trainer boyfriend
of more than four years. They hope to marry soon
after negotiating a pre-nuptial agreement.
(Reporting by Jill Serjeant; Editing by Richard
Chang and Cynthia Osterman)
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